THE PROBLEM
Our nation is in pain. Unarmed minorities are being killed by officers sworn to protect them. Police officers are being killed in retaliation. The order brought from trust in police and the justice system is being threatened. This impacts all of us.
What can we do?
Demonstrate Support
Seahawks players took what had been a demonstration against the flag and turned it into a demonstration in support of what the flag stands for. They stand with arms linked, white and black, during the national anthem. It is our turn to join them. A simple act of linking arms with the fans sitting next to you says that you want citizen and police safety.
Imagine the power of 70,000 people joined together in support for a better America
Build a bridge
Showing support is something everyone can do. That will not be enough to heal these wounds and make our streets safer. Doug Baldwin is working with members of the Seahawks and city officials to create a task force called Build a Bridge. Their goal is to go beyond symbolic gestures and find tangible action that can be taken. Baldwin offered this as the mission for the task force:
Build a Bridge Task Force Mission
To gain as much knowledge from both sides as possible. Find the right questions to ask and to build a bridge to heal our communities and regain the trust of those tasked with protecting the communities.
This process is just beginning. As tangible opportunities for citizen action surface, this page will be updated with how you can help.
"Why wouldn’t you (speak out)? You’re a human being. You watch that video of that man who has his hands raised up, and he’s walking back to his car. Now I don’t know all the context, but know that man has a family, and I can’t help but put myself in that situation. The man had his hands up. My father’s a police officer, and he’s told me numerous times about his training and how they’ve gone through what they call verbal judo, which is essentially them trying to deescalate the situation. From what I understand and from what he’s told me and his experience in homeland security is that that method of training is not consistent throughout the entirety of the United States, and that’s an issue… As a human being, I can’t help but sit up here and tell you how I feel and let you know that it’s not OK." - Doug Baldwin
